Bottle-capper.



0. P. :BALTZLM BOTTLE GAPPER. APPLICATION FILED MAY 20, 1l2.-

Patented Jan.21,v 1913.

@San-@E 0l` F. BALTZLEY.

BOTTLE GAPPBR.

APPLIGATMN FILED MAY 29, 1912.

Patented J an. 21, 1913` 2 SHEETS-SHEET z.

'siding-i4 al Hagerstown, county of lashingvile-Cappers,` of which the following` is a.

. or mouth vnormal position. This may he done hy hand nfninrn saires rar rien (BELEN 'FRANCIS BALTZLEY, OF HAGERSTOWN. MARYLAND, ASSIGNOR 0F ONE-HALF T0 ROBERT M. RUP?, OF HAGERSTOWN, MARYLAND.

BOTTLE-CAPPER.

Lgtfgn Specification of Letters Patent. 'Vgltqini'gd Jau, 211 q 1913A Application filed May 20, i912. Serial. 110.698.479.

To fit/Z ic/zu/H'fwmg/ nare/fn: ment serving to withdraw the pushers and iin it known that: l, Omen ll. Blu/miler, a citii/fen of ihe United States ot America, re

tion, State of-liiaryland, have invented certain new and useful improvements 1n Botspecification.

i This invention relates to a bottle capper which may lbe conveniently made in, the forni of a hand tool particularly adapted for use in closing milk bottles but capable of Jari-ous uses in the bottling art.. y

There are numerous machines for apply-y ingv hottle eapsinnd Stoppers, hut these are all comparativ bulky, elaborate and expensiveQancl the cost et' such machines prohihits their use in anyhut the, largest dairies. The hottle capper which is the suhject. oi this invention is simple in construction, comparatively inexpensive so thatit may he used in any dairy, and of a size and shape to he conveniently carried and gripped inthe hand and applied successively to the various bottles to he ci pped.

`The capper consists ot' an upright' guide or magazine for the disks, shown in the form of a` vertical tune, a plurality of latches t'or holding the disks, and means for actiniling;` the latches to release the disks one at a time, and one or more pushers to seat each disk `when released.

in the preferred form oi.' my invention which i have illustrated, there is a 'funnel at' the hutten) oi the guide or magazine inlie hy means oi which the capper ir; positioned over the mouth of the botie. and a sliding grip sleeve, having a re-` iiueed portion or otherwise adapted to he ,eed hy hand. inelosing the guide This aiding LL'rip sleeve is i'nounted to slide on the magazine and carries various means for actuating` the latches and pushers. lVhen the rapper is in operative position, the upright guide or container is in aliiienient1 \vith the hottie neck. 'lo seat the cap the sliding' rip sleeve is pi ssed downward` moving;` for ort distance relatively to the magazine. actuate the i iatehes and release a cap which is then ennjafed lz-y the pushers and tinced into posh tion in the bottle. month. After the opera tion of capping, the sleeve is returned to or le; means et a spring'. the return movebring,r another ca the pushers.

ln the :ufcompanyingl drawings l have shown so much of a bottle capper construct.- ed in accordance with my invention in its preferred form as is necessary to a complete uxulerstanding' of the nature and operation ot' the same. v liigure 1 is an elevation oi' the capper with. the parts in normal or retracted position, a portion oi' the sleeve being broken away to show the upper end of one pusher. Fig. 2 is a vertical central section the same showing the sleeve in normal position, the pushers being Withdrawn. Fig. is a similar section showing the sleeve and a pusher act of seating` a cap m a p into position to` he fed tu advanced in the bottle. Figs. 11:, 5 and are fragmentary seetions showing each of the latches respectively inthe position which it occupies in Fig. Q. Fig. 7 is a horizontal cross-section on the line 7, 7 Fig. 2. Fig. 8 is a bottom plan of the machine as seen in Fig. 2, the mouthpiece being removed for clearness of illustration.

.The bottleV ca'pper consists of a guide or magazine shown in the iorm of a tube l on which are mounted a plurality of .latches 2, and 4, and a `grip-sleeve (i carrying a plie rality of pushers 5 and inclosing' the magazine or guide and. mounted to slide thereon. lVilhin the sleeve are cam rings 7 and 8 :for actuating;` the latches'and pushers, and ati' the lower end off the magazine is a mouth or 'funnel t) to engage the. bottle and position the tube in alinen'ient therewith.

llneircling the tube l, just above the. lat ches7 is a ring` o'rcollar l() secured to the tuhe and forming a seat: for the spiral. spring` ll which at its upper end engages the gripper sleeve G Where it. is inturned at 1Q. The spring' il serves to return the sleeve to normal position after the seating stroke as hereinafter described. For convenience in gripping, the diameter of the upper portion of the sleeve is reduced at 13.

Below the ring ltipmounted on the guide or magazine tube l, encircling the Same, is a ring or collar l5. This ring is Slotted at lt' al. several points equally spaced about its circumference, and the latches 2, 3 and 1 are pivoted. intermediately of their length in the slots 1G. l'etferably the'latches or latch levers E2, 3 and "e 'are provided each 6 to actuate t-he latches as hereinafter clescribed. Below the'pivot 19, on which the latches are mounted, each is'provided with a second or lower cam surface 2O on lever 2, 21 on lever 4, .and 22 on lever 3 to co` operate with the cam ring 8 at thelower end'of the grip sleeve 6, which cam ring is slotted to receive the latches. The surfaces 20 and 2 2 are in the same plane and coindide the one with the other as seen in Fig. 2. The inclination of these surfaces is opposite to that of the cam surface 2,1 on the lever 4.

The funnel or mouth 9, as shown, is secured to the lower end of the magazine or guide tube 1 by means of lvertical bridge pieces or supports, each having two legs 24 which are fastened by means of screws to the lower end of the tube and extend downward, having feet 25 which are fastened by rivets or other suitable means to the funnel or mouth t). The legs 24 of the supports or bridge pieces are spaced apart and the lower ends of the latches swingY between the legs into and out of the path of the disks, Stoppers or caps, as hereinafter described. The inner or front edges of the latch levers are vertical at 26 when the latches are in forward or operative position so that they bear against the outer face of the tube and limit the movement of the latches, the-tube surface acting as a stop. At the lower end of the latch 2 is a right angular hook or atch 3G inwardly disposed. The latch 3 is provided with a hooked end 37 similarly disposed, and the latch- 4 has an inturned point. or hook 38. The pushers 27 are pro` vided each with an arcuate foot 28 of" an outside radius slightly less than the inside radius of the ,guide 1 at its lower extremity.. 'lhe length ot' these arcs is greater than the distance between the legs 24. The feet are placed inside the supports, their shanks or legs 29 extending out` between the supports and being otliset justabove the foot to forni a shoulder 35, and from there extending upward through slots in the lower cam ring 8. 'lhe pusher shanks, as shown, are slotted at each side at 30 adjacent their upper extremities, forming top shoulders 3l and bottom shoulders The top shoulders 31 normally rest on the top ot' the cam ring and serve as a means for suspending the pushers, and the bottoni shoulders are engaged by the cam 8 to force the pushers down in the seat ing stroke. Adjacent the bottoni shoulder 32, each pusher shank or leg' is bent outward. forming!` a cani surface or incline 32,. The top end l-'t of the shank is turned over at an angle so that when the top end of the'pushcr is forced against` the ring l5, as hereinafter described. this angular portion 3l takes a bearing against the bottoni faroof the ring. causingl thc lower end of the pusher to be thrown out and '\\ithdra\\'n from the path ot the disks.

ln the operation of the machine, a package or cartridge 4U containing.` caps 4l' arranged in the torni of a cylinder or a ninnher of loose caps are placed in tlu` tube or ,fruide l, the wrapper or cylindrical wallsl ol the cartridge resting on an internal shoulder 42 formed for this purpose near the bottoni of the guide. lf the caps are in a. cartridge or package, the lower end is opened before insel-tine so as to release the caps, and the lower `aps or disks drop down wa rd. the bot toni cap restingon the catch or hook El() at the lower end of the latch 2. l `or the pur4 pose of bringing the tirst cap into operative position` z'. c., beneath thc feet, 2S of thc pushers. as lshown at. -tl in Fie'. the yefrip .sleeve is given a preliminaryv stroke. For this purpose the funnel t) may bc placed on the inouth of the bottle or rested on any suitable support. The reduced portion 1li of the sleeve is then Igrasped in the hand and the sleeve forced down. ln initial position the cam ring T rests on thc upper portion of the latch lcicr 4 above the shoulder of the cani surface 1S. .its the sleeve moves downward` the cam ring: passes from thisvv cam surface. releasing the latch -t-. At. the same tinie the cani ring` S rides up on the cani surface 21 of this latch, and its Vlower. end is swung` inward.` the pointed catch 3S being inserted between the bottom cap -tt and the one next above it. Immediately tollowing this the cain ring 8 passes od of the shoulders or cam surfaces 20 and 22, so that the latches 2 and 3 are released. fis the sleeve advances, the cani ring; 7 engages the cam surfaces 17 of the latch levers 2 and 3, swinging the levers about the pivot 19, throwing their lower ends out and moving the hooks so that the bottom disk or cap is released by the latch 2 and its hook or catch 36, but before the bottoni disk is released. the pushers 27 have been slightly lowered by the downward movement ot the cani tl. upon which they are supported and caused to rest upon the upper edge -t5 of the .mouth or funnel 9 which acts as a stop. Thus their ends 34 are released troni engagement.'with the stationary ringl5 on the guide, and the surface of the cani 8 has engaged the cani surface 33 of the pushers and nnwfcd them inward so that their shoulders l are in po sition to receive and support the bottoni lll() roaeffae dish, see Fig. 3. lf the downward stroke is continued, the cam ring- 8 will engage the bottom shoulders 32 of the pushers Q7 and force them downward so that they will per- 'form the seating operation. the shoulders 35 passingl into slots 46 in the edge or iange t5. but. at this stage there is no dish in pw sition to be siated, and nothing further is aecmimlished until the sleeve (l is retracted. As the sleeve moves upward` the ram S rides up on the cam Surfaces 20 and swinging` thelatches 2 and 3 inward and ln'iirging` the catches 3G and 37 into the path ot' the disks as shown in Fig. 2. At the saine time the pnshers are withdrawn by engagement ot' the cam 8 with the top shoulders 3l, and the end 3i is `torced against the rings 15,throwing thepushers outward and releasing` the disk 4-1 sothat it drops and rests on the catches 37 ot' the levers 5l as shown in Fig. 2. Next the latches l are swung outward. the cam ,S passing ott? from the cam shouldersl 2l and the cam 'i' engaging the cams 18 at their upper end to move them positively, so that the disks in the magazine. or guide are released and rest upon the` catches 3G of the latches 2.

The capper is now ready for operation and may be placed at the funnel engaging the mouth of the bottle to be capped, or the priming operation may, as we have. stated, be pert'orined with the capper in position on the bottle. lWhen the sleeve 6 is again forced down, the pushers 27 drop slightly so that they rest on the top surface of the funnel or mouth 9 described, and are lorced inward by engagemeiitof the cam 8 with the earn surface 33 of Vthe pusher-s. At the same time the latch 5. is swung inward,

the catch 3S being inserted between the-lower.

cap t4 oit those in the .magazine and the one yjust about it, and the latches 2 and 3 are swung outward, the bottom cap et dropping` ou the shoulders of the pushers, and the cap :il carried by the latches 3 is released. As the sleeve moves downward, the cam 8 engages the shoulders 32 ot' the pushers and torens them against the cap, seating it in the bottle neck. is the sleeve is withdrawn` the latches 2 and i?) are again advanced into the path oi' the capsv` the latch d is retracted, the pusher is retracted and withdrawn, the cap thereon dropping on to the latches 3 as previously described, and the tool is ready to be applied to the 'next bottle.

v'if he capping` operation as described may he easily pertornied, the bottles being capped in mieli succession with slight et't'ort. The operation is simple and may beperformed by the lowest. grade of labor. All that is necessary 'for the operator to do is to place the caps in themagazine and apply the tool successively to the mouths of the bottles to be capped, the grip sleeve being forced down ach time the tool is applied to the bottle.

i. will be apparent from study of the operiation which We have described that the caps are supported with substantial continuity and that there is no opportunity for the capsl to turn and become folded or creased, and it .is to this end that the pushers are caused t0 catch the cap and drop it on the latches 3, and the latches 3 are in turn provided to catch the ap when dropped by the pushers and release it immediately above the bottle neck so that it drops into position without opportunity for it to turn. Aside from this consideration the pushers 27 might be caused to dwell in their outward position until the cap dropped by the latches f2 is passed, and the latches 3 might be removed.

l have thus described in detail a single 'embodinientof my invention in order that an upright path for actuating the latchesr successively to release the caps in turn and advancing `the pusher to seat ,the caps. l

2. A bottle capper consisting of an up right guide, a pluralityof latches, one over the other, lfor feeding the caps one at a time, "a pusher and a smgle integral member moving in a vert-ical path to actuate the latches successively to release the caps and advance the pusher to seat the caps.

3. A bottle cappcr consisting ot' an upright guide or magazine, a grip member mounted to sli'de up and down the guide, means on the guide and controlling means therefor on the grip member for supporting the caps vand rcleasinglthem in turn, and pushers carried by the grip meniber feti' scating the caps.

e. In a bottle capper, an upright *guide )r magazine, a grip member mounted 'to slide up and down the guide, means for suppor ing the aps and controlling means thgeref ,r whereby the caps are released in turn, pusher-s carried by the grip member for seat.- ing ythe ln a bottle-capping machine, an uprightl l guide or magazine, a grip member mounted to slide up and down tlie-ouide, movable' means Vfor supporting the caps, meansr for actuating said means to release thecaps in turn at each stroke of the grip member, and pushers mounted on the grip member to swing radially and te have a limited vertical However, the construction of' rio motion relatively thereto, a stop for the pushers on which they rest. at intervals, cam portions on the pushers, means on' the grip members to engage the cam member on each .pusher when it rests on the support togforce it inward so it is over the bottle neck and -It'ree to move downward with the grip sleeve to seat the cap.

A bottle rapper consisting of a vertical vguide or magazine for caps, latches to support the caps mounted at the lower end of the guide and arranged in sets with the capcngaging portions ot one set above those of the next, a reciprocatingl member ounted to move in the direction'ofthe lengt :of the guide, means thereon to actuate the latches to release the caps in turn and pushers actuated by the reciprocating member to seat the i caps.

7. .Ik bottle capper consisting of an upright guide or magazine :tor caps, latches at the lower end of the guide to support the caps, thefytlatches arranged in sets with the cap-engaging portions ofveach set above those of the next set, a grip member mounted to move in the direction of the guide, means thereon to actuate the latches to re,- lease thetlcaps in turn, pushers mounted .on the grip member to swing radially'andyhave 'aflimited vertical motion relatively thereto' a stopfforthepushers to support the-hin intervals, and means on the grip member to engage the' pushers and swing theminward when they rest on the stop so that they clear the stop and are. free to move downward 'with the grip member to seat the cap.

,8l A bottle `eapper consisting of'an upright guide for the caps, a plurality of setsr of latches mounted to mov. into and out of .the path ofthe caps,- the atches arranged with the capengaging portions of eacbset above those of the next, means verticallyreciprocating 4for actuating the latches lto move into and out of the path of the caps, the adjacent setsl moving alternately to re` lease they caps `one at a time, means for seatyiig the caps, and means for actuating the same to seat each cap as released.

9. 'A bottle capper consisting of' an upright guide or magazine for caps, three sets of latches mounted to move into andout of the path of the caps', the cap engaging porand control them in tions of the latches of each set being above those of the next, means vertically reciprocating for actuating the latches to move into and out of the path of the caps, the adj acont sets moving alternately to release the caps one at a time and control them in their downward movement, pushers, and means for actuating the same to seat each cap as it is released.

1G. A bottle capper consisting of an up- Aright guide or magazine for caps, a plurality of sets ot latches mounted on the guide to swing into and out of the path of the caps and having cam surfaces thereon, the cap engaging portions ol'4 the4 latches of each set being above those of the'next set, a member sliding on the guide and having cam surfaces for actuating the latches to move into .and out of the path of the caps to release thel same in turn, the adjacent sets moving alternately to release the caps; one at a time and control them in their downward movement, a pusher and means for actuating the sliding on the guide and having cam sur- ,faces iter actuating the latches to move into and outV of thepath of the aps to release .the same in turn, the adjacent sets moving alternately to release tihe caps one at a time tieir downward n1ovcnient, a pusher mounted on the sliding mem- 'ber to swing radially and have alimitcd ver -tical movement relatively thereto, the pusher having a shoulder to receive the cap, means for swinging it in to catch the cap and .niea-nsroLswinging it. out to drop the cap, .thel pusher moving'downward with the Sleeve to seat the cap. v

Signed by me at Hagerstown, Vashington county, Md., this 13th day of lll'ay 1012.

@REN FRANCIS BALTZLEY.

lllitnesses: g

Roer. M. Rory, A. Yinennvc. 

